Garment hanger



Dec. 20, 1932.

l. A. THOMPSON 1,891,250

GARMENT HANGER Filed Dec. 50, 1929 ATTORNEY.

Patented Dec. 20, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT@ OFFICE IRVING yA'LAN'SON THOMPSON, OF MILWAUKEE,

VISCONSIN GARMENT HANGER This invention relates to hangers and more particularlytoa hanger structure designed to save space, embodying to such end, a swinging arm which may be latched in an extended position or easily released and swung downwardly so as to occupy comparatively little space.

Among the objects of the invention is the provision of a hanger which may be economically manufactured and of sufficient strength to accommodate substantial loads hung there'- on, such as garments or 'other material.

fil-further object of the invention is the provision of a combined structure of hanger and bracket which permits horizontal swinging of the hanger in pivotal relation to the bracket.

A. further object is the provision of a hanger which maybe mounted' on either a hori- Zontallor avertical supportsuch as a wall, a door, la window or a shelf, and which, when so mounted and havinggarments or the like hung thereon in the extended position, may be swungdownwardlyunder the weight of the hanging material to occupy less space.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a hanger which when swung to extended'position automatically latches itself in thatposition, until such time as a user de-y sires to release the latch by easily manipulated means provided for such purpose- The invention comprises further advantageous details ofimprovement which will be more specifically reflected in the description hereinafter set forth.

Referring to the drawing accompanying andlforming a part of thisspecification:

Figure 1 is a view in elevation of the 4o bracket and 'hanger structure in assembled relation, the hanger being capable of swinging horizontally when so mounted.

Fig. 2 is a side plan view, partly broken away, of the structure of Fig. 1,? showing more clearly the latch, and by dotted lines, the downwardly swung position of the hanger arm.

Fig. Sis a side plan view of the bracket and the hanger separated.

The'bracket 1 is made from an integral flat metal strap providing an extended flat portion 5, apertured at 2, to receive suitable fastening means such as the screws 3 for fastenmg the bracket to any suitable support. The

ends of the metal strap are folded and bent I* laterally to provide a pair of lugs 6 disposed at substantially right angles to the back por'- tion, such lugs being apertured at 7 to freely receive reduced extensions 9 and 10 of a flat supporting member 8, which has been drilled and tapped 1f so desired to receive suitable holding elements extending from the hanger, presently to be described. Either bolts or screws may be employed for the holding elements, screws 13 being illustrated in the preferred embodiment. The reduced end extensions of the supporting member 8 are of unequal length, the shorter extension being disposed at the lower end to allow the shoulders defined by the reduced end of the supporting member to rest in supporting engagement upon the lower lug 6. The length of the sup-` porting member 8 from the shoulders formed by the upper reduced extension 9 inclusive of the lower extension 10 is such as snug engagement between the inner faces of the lugs when assembling the parts, the assembly with the bracket being made by first inserting the longer extension 9 through the upper apertured lug 6 and forcing the shorter extension 10 into` registry with the aperture in the lower lug, in which position the supporting member will become freely and rotatably engaged between the lugs.

The hanger comprises a hanger bracket 11 formed of a kfiat metal strip, the upper end 1,5 of which is bent laterally at an angle of ninety degrees forming two adjacent flat bearing portions, provided with spaced apertures to receive fastening screws for cooperation with'any suitable support. The lower portion of the metal bracket stripv is twisted to form an extension 14 lying in a pla-nelperpendicular to the plane of the main bracket bearing portions, the extension 14 being upwardly directed at its end to provide a support 16 for the hanger arm 18 pivoted at 17 intermediate its ends, to the extension support. The pivotal point of the hanger arm is near one endv of the arm but sufficiently removed therefrom to provide a short lever portion of to form a the arm extending beyond the pivotal support into proximity with the bracket 11 for engagement with a latch on the hanger bracket. Due to the pivotal relation between the hanger arm and the bracket extension, the former is capable of being swung from a depending position to a horizontal or extended position, where it becomes automatically latched against downward movement.

The automatic latch means comprises a plate 24 rigidly attached to the hanger bracket 11 and there is pivoted to the plate at 25 a second depending latch plate 23 which has its free end slotted and normally biased away from the bracket b 7 a spring 27 interposed between the bracket and plate and surrounding a headed stud or screw 26, which passes through a suitable aperture provided in the latch plate. The headed stud or screw restrains the outward movement of the latch plate but allows inward movement of the plate against the force of the spring.

The hanger arm 18, at its free end, is provided with a finger hold 19 to be grasped by a user for manipulation of the arm. A push rod 20, extending substantially the entire length of the hanger arm, is positioned along the upper edge of the arm by guide loops 21 spot-welded or otherwise fastened to the arm. The guide loops accommodate the push rod allowing free longitudinal movement of the rod through the loops.

The outer end of the push rod is disposed above the finger hold on the hanger arm where it may be easily engaged by the thumb of an operator and the inner end 22 of the rod is bifurcated and downwardly bent on opposite sides of the hanger arm in a position to be moved into engagement with the free end of the slotted latch plate when the hanger arm is in the extended position. The hanger arm may be apertured, as at 28, at spaced intervals to receive hooks of separate supporting structures.

lt will be readily apparent from the above description that the hanger may by means of the separate bearing surfaces be supported either from a vertical support, or it may be supported from a horizontal support such as the under side of a shelf. It will also be understood that the hanger may be clamped to the supporting member 8 of the bracket, which in turn may be permanently fastened to a suitable vertical support. and in the event such arrangement is desirous, the hanger will be positioned for horizontal swinging movement due to the rotatable connection of the supporting member with the bracket.

The. operation of the device is as follows: Assuming the hanger portion is suitably mounted by rigid attachment to a fixed support, or the support of the bracket portion, the hanger arm may be swung downwardly "il te occupy the position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 2, or swung upwardly to occupy a horizontal extended position as indicated in F ig. 1 of the drawing. With the hanger arm extended as in F ig. 1, conventional garment hangers may be attached thereto, the arm being retained in the extended position by the slotted latch plate which engages the comparatively short lever extension of the arm at the upper edge. The arm will be retained in the extended position indefinitely but in order to conserve space which is often the case, the arm may be swung downwardly under the weight of garments hung thereon by merely grasping the end of the arm and forcing the push rod inwardly. The bifurcated inner end of the push rod will engage the spring latch plate forcing it against the tension of the spring to a point where the inner end of the arm may be freed therefrom allowing the arm to swing downwardly. To

return the hanger arm to the extended position it is only necessary to lift the free end of the arm, the inner end thereof, in its swinging motion, engaging the latch plate, depressing it spring until the end of the arm passes through the slot clear of the latch, the spring forcing the latch plate outwardly to engage over the top of the hanger arm. It will be understood from the foregoing description that the hanger arm thus becomes automatically latched in the extended position.

Modifications of the structure shown and described, will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the invention is not limited to the specific embodiment selected for illustration, but the appended claims are intended as broadly commensurate with the scope of the invention, Vwithout limitation to the specific features of construction described in the speciication.

I claim:

1. In aV hanger of the character described, the combination with a bracket support mounted for a horizontal swinging movement, comprising a vertical flat metal strap having its lower portion bent forwardly and twisted into a plane vertical thereto, the outer end of said lower portion being bent upwardly, of a hanger arm pivotally mounted substantially at one end to said oute end for vertical swinging movement in a plane parallel to the plane of the lower portion, releasable latch means mounted on said bracket support for coaction with the inner end of said arm to hold the same positioned horizontally from said lower portion, and a push rod slidably mounted on said arm for cooperation with said latch means to release the same.

2. In a hanger of the character described, the combination with a bracket support comprising a flat metal strap having its lower end bent outwardly and twisted through an angle of substantially 90, of a hanger arm against the tension of the scribed my name.

IRVING ALANSON THoMiSoN. 

